Better late than never, right?
Mark Ramsay
Saunter into a party an hour behind schedule and you're "fashionably late." Do the same thing at work and you could be in trouble.
That's probably why respondents to a recent CareerBuilder survey came up with all sorts of crazy excuses for their tardiness. Standouts in terms of weirdness include "I put petroleum jelly in my eyes," "I was cornered by a moose," and "My mother locked me in the closet."
Business Insider spoke with Rosemary Haefner, the chief human resources officer at CareerBuilder, 
about how to recover from straggling into work late.
She notes that every company is different and sometimes, showing up late
 isn't that big of a deal.
"Overall, whether or not you need to address it comes down to company
 culture," Haefner told Business Insider. "If everyone is diligently working 
when you come in late 
every morning, then you probably stand out. If the occasional late arrival is 
okay according to your 
culture and policy, you likely won't be disciplined."
However, if you're worried, here are some steps you can take to mitigate
 your tardiness:

1. Call ahead, if you can

"If you know you're going to be late, the best thing to do is to call the 
appropriate parties to let them know," Haefner says. "Then, enlist 
someone to cover you, if necessary 
and possible."

2. Consider the impact of your lateness

Did you miss anything big? If not, it's probably best to avoid making a 
huge deal about being late.
"If you were exceptionally late, you may need to move on to an apology
 letter or email," Haefner says. "Another reason you may want to choose 
this option is if your 
lateness caused a big problem for the company, such as losing a client."

3. Apologize

It never hurts to just say sorry.
"Being late is a part of life, and it's always polite to apologize when it 
happens," Haefner told Business Insider. "Everybody's human and 
makes mistakes, so own up
 to yours and move on."
If you're concerned that you've really messed up, make the apology in
person, instead of over email.

4. Provide an explanation

If you've got a legitimate explanation, feel free to use it! Just try to sound
 like you're providing an explanation, not making excuses.

5. Make it clear that this isn't going to become 

a habit

It might be a good idea to say something along the lines of, "'I know
that this company values punctuality, and I will strive to be on time 
in the future,'" says Haefner.

6. Be honest

It might be tempting to make up excuses,
"As a rule of thumb, remember to be honest," Haefner told Business 
Insider. "Integrity is what every company wants. When you lie, you
 break that trust and that will
 upset an employer even more."
If you feel like your reasoning is too silly (see: cornered by a moose) 
or inappropriate for work, then forego making excuses.